


winning the lottery

by suga



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Confessions, Graphic Depictions of Illness, M/M, Mentions of Cancer, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-06-04
Packaged: 2018-07-10 22:20:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7010662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suga/pseuds/suga
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>it started with a spark that ignited into something much bigger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. confession

**Author's Note:**

> haikyuu!! ot3+ week is here! i'm trying to stick all the days in the same au, so the summary may change in a bit. i have everything worked out but i'm still actually not done. also its 3am, forgive me for any mistakes. the title was the working title and the summary keeps changing and oh boy this is a real hot mess and i'm sorry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day one - ~~first meet~~ or confession

The first time they had met, there was a spark. The first time they had met had been during a practice match in their first year. The two teams fought tooth and nail against one another until the victor had been decided. The spark ignited even more when their next match was an official one.

Akaashi had heard the story many times, with different renditions every time. The story would be over exaggerated in favour of one team or another, and always with different outcomes even though he knew the real story behind their first meetings. And he believed in the spark, because he had witnessed it first hand.

Akaashi met Bokuto his first year of high school upon joining the volleyball team. He thought that Bokuto was loud and obnoxious, and there were times when he wished he could turn his upperclassman off for just five minutes. But as the year progressed, he learned to deal with the boy’s antics and even found himself being drawn to him more and more.

The same could be said for Bokuto, of course. He felt there was something about Akaashi but he couldn’t quite place it. Opposites attract maybe? In the end he stayed close to Akaashi and, as they say, the rest was history.

Or at least it was the beginning of history.

It was Bokuto’s third year and Akaashi’s second that things started to become more complicated. There were lingering looks between the two that even their fellow teammates couldn’t ignore, though stayed quiet. They had both gathered the courage one early spring afternoon after running to Bokuto’s house through the rain. It was after one of the first practices of the new school year with the brand new first years, and they were tired, but as they stood in the entryway to Bokuto’s house, peeling their drenched clothes off their bodies and their eyes lingering on one another far longer than they should; it happened instantaneously.

Bokuto’s arms were wrapped around Akaashi’s body quicker than he could even think, and he was so glad that he remembered that the other’s parents were overseas and that the house was empty as his own arms slipped around Bokuto’s waist. He let himself be carried down the hall to the all-too familiar bedroom that he had spent reading and studying with the upperclassman.

But instead of reading and studying, this time was filled with overdue kisses and shaky touches, and filling one another with butterflies. While Bokuto most times was rough with most things he did, he was gentle when it came to Akaashi. And that evening, their relationship rose to a new level as they wordlessly told one another how they’d felt over the last year, and both of them woke up the following morning with stupid grins on their faces.

The next practice match after that night was against Nekoma, and Akaashi still couldn’t ignore the spark that Bokuto had with the other teams captain. He understood, of course. He could feel it too. There was something about Kuroo Tetsurou he couldn’t quite put his finger on, even as he watched him interact with his boyfriend.

The practice matches with Nekoma happened more often in Akaashi’s second year than the first, and it gave him more of a chance to observe. He couldn’t ignore the way Bokuto and Kuroo spoke to one another between games, or the looks shared between them. Akaashi recognized the look on Bokuto’s face more than anything. And Akaashi knew he should feel jealous, or maybe even threatened, but he couldn’t. He was sure he looked at Kuroo the same way.

“Bokuto-san?” Akaashi asked after practice. It was the last practice match against Nekoma before the week of training camp. He sat by the door of the clubroom and waited for the other to get ready. The rest of the team had left a while ago.

Bokuto was only able to manage a hum in acknowledgement as he tried to pull his t-shirt over his head.

“How do you feel about Kuroo?”

“Eh? What do you mean what do I feel about Kuroo. He’s an obnoxious tw-.”

“Koutarou.” Akaashi said calmly, cutting the other off. Boktuo slowly set down his gym shirt and reached for his school shirt. He could see the glint in Akaashi’s eye that there was something else he was trying to get at, and the fact that he had used his first name had thrown him off. “How do you feel about Kuroo?”

It took Bokuto a few moments of fumbling with his gym clothes before he started to talk. But then he spoke calmly, with somehow collected thoughts on his feelings for the other captain. Akaashi was the only one to really ever see him speak this way. There was excitement in his voice, but it was a different kind of enthusiasm. And when he spoke about Kuroo, Akaashi knew there was feelings there just by the look on Bokuto’s face. There was a small smile tugging on the captain’s lips, and a small flush on his cheeks.

The discussion didn’t end when they left the clubroom, and Akaashi eventually shared with Bokuto how he felt for Kuroo, though it hadn’t been quite in depth as Bokuto. The other was surprised, to say the least, but no less happy.

It was the night before the training camp, and the pair had bundled up on the couch together at Bokuto’s house as rain pelted down heavy on the roof. They both were quiet, watching a film, until finally Akaashi spoke up.

“We should ask Kuroo out.” He said quietly, and Bokuto frowned, as he was unsure if he had heard his boyfriend correctly.

“We should what?”

“We should ask Kuroo out.”

There was a brief pause, as Bokuto understood what Akaashi was saying.

“Can – can we do that?”

“We can do that. If you’re okay with that, that is.”

Bokuto spluttered over his words, and Akaashi tightened his hand on the other’s to calm him down.

“I’m definitely okay with that. I didn’t know it was an option.”

Throughout the week of training camp, Akaashi and Bokuto both tried their hardest to get Kuroo on his own. But while the three of them hung out with one another often outside of the gym, there were always others tagging along.

“We need to get Kuroo away from Kenma especially.” Akaashi mumbled during a short break. They had broken away from everyone else and had found a bit of shade. The summer air was hot and heavy, but with practice matches inside all day, it was nice to get some somewhat fresh air.

“I could just ask him if I could talk to him.” Bokuto said with a shrug, and Akaashi slowly turned his head towards the captain before shaking his head with a sigh.

“We should have just done that from the beginning.”

The next match was against Nekoma, and Fukurodani was on a winning streak.

“Kuroo, come with me to the other gym after the match, I need to talk to you.” Bokuto said as he stood at the net facing the other captain.

Kuroo cocked his head to the side, surprised at how forward the request was. He couldn’t find it in him to deny Bokuto, and nodded. But then a smirk grew on his face as Yamamoto served the ball.

“If we win, I will go with you to the other gym.”

And Bokuto’s eyes widened, because that would mean their winning streak would be over, but he really needed to talk to Kuroo. But he didn’t want to lose.

Bokuto managed to keep his groan inside as the ball was received behind him.

Akaashi and Bokuto’s silent conversation was a tough one to decipher. Bokuto really wanted to win, but he really didn’t want to win. Akaashi was obviously trying his hardest to fumble through sets, but only just because he, too, wanted to win. But he knew this talk with Kuroo was an important one, the captain of the other team just didn’t realize how important.

The teams ended up making it a three set match. Bokuto was having a really tough time holding back, even though he was trying really hard to suck at volleyball. It didn’t help that his teammates had no idea what was going on, and were playing at full capacity. With Fukurodani’s set point, Akaashi had set the ball to Bokuto and he had barely brushed it with his fingertips to send it over the net. He was sure it would get picked up, there was no force behind his spike.

But the ball touched the ground, and the whistle blew, and the look of horror on Bokuto’s face matched the strain on Akaashi’s. They’d won, even though they had tried to not win, and they wouldn’t get a chance to talk to Kuroo.

The pair had made their way outside a short while later. The sun had started to set and shade was falling on the school grounds. They’d both fallen down under a tree, a place where it was the shadiest, and cooled down from the match. Bokuto laid flat on his back with his arms covering his face, groaning quietly to himself as Akaashi propped himself up on his elbows beside him, eyes closed.

Neither of them was sure how long they had been laying there, but Akaashi opened his eyes slowly once he could hear a pair of feet walking through the grass. The first thing Akaashi saw was a pair of red track pants. His eyes trailed up the other’s body until he met him eye to eye.

“Kuroo-san…” Akaashi managed to croak out. He hadn’t expected the other captain to come out to find them, especially after that match. Akaashi could see Bokuto sit up out of the corner of his eye.

“I went to the other gym to look for you, cause I figured you’d be practicing anyway, but Kenma said he saw you guys come out here instead. Is everything okay?” Kuroo asked, looking down at the other two before sitting down in front of him.

“Uh…” Bokuto started before Akaashi cut him off.

“We both actually wanted to talk to you about something, yeah. And everything is fine, before you get concerned or anything.” Akaashi could feel his heart skipping every other beat, which he sure wasn’t healthy. They had both planned out multiple scenarios on how this discussion was going to go, but now that the time had come, all the words were leaving him. He turned to Bokuto, who was already looking back at him with wide eyes.

“As you know, Kuroo-san…” Akaashi began, turning back to Kuroo. “We’ve been together for a couple months…”

“Only a couple months?” Kuroo asked, a hint of surprise in his voice. “I thought…” his eyes trailed over to Bokuto, and Akaashi glanced over to his boyfriend who had completely turned his head away from both of them, hiding his face. “Never mind, carry on.”

“Uh, right. A couple months. Anyway, um…” Akaashi’s train of thought was completely wiped as Kuroo kept his eyes on him. The pressure was too much, and Bokuto was still turned away from t he both of them.

“Is that all? That can’t be all.” Kuroo said, cocking his head to the side.

“That’s not all.” Akaashi mumbled, rubbing his face with both of his hands. He needed to get his mind back on track, and Bokuto wasn’t helping. That was, until Akaashi opened his voice to speak again, but was cut off.

“Kuroo.” Bokuto said, in the calmest voice. It threw Akaashi off, so it no doubt threw Kuroo off as well. “Akaashi and I have been together for a couple months.”

“I got that.”

Bokuto cleared his throat loudly as he was interrupted. “ _And_ Akaashi confronted me about something a few weeks ago that I’d known for a while but kept quiet about, and he shared those feelings as well. And I can’t remember what I was supposed to say, or how I was supposed to say it because neither of us knew how this was going to go down.”

Akaashi sighed quietly before turning to Kuroo, eyes locked on him. “How do you feel about Bokuto?”

“Eh?” He heard Bokuto beside him.

“What? How do I feel about Bokuto? He’s loud and obno…” Kuroo trailed off when he could feel Akaashi’s glare right through his soul. “Oh…”

“How do you _feel_ about Bokuto?” Akaashi repeated, feeling as though he was having déjà vu.

There was a pause, and the only thing that could be heard was the yelling from the gym and cicadas in the distance. It was solo practice hours, and Akaashi was glad he didn’t need to stress about being late for a match.

Finally Kuroo sighed and ran his hands through his never-changing bed hair. “If I’m being honest, I felt something for Bokuto in first year. But then you, Akaashi, came into the picture and the way you two were together, I thought you’d been together much longer than a couple months. And so I tried to will myself to stop feeling things, but I couldn’t exactly stop it completely. So there are still feelings there, but I mean, you’re together and happy so…”

“Okay, good, this will make it easier then.” Akaashi said quietly, feeling as though half of the weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. “Bokuto?”

All eyes were on Bokuto and Akaashi reached over for his hand, squeezing it tightly. He found feel a slight tremble in the other’s body. The feelings between them hadn’t exactly been shared out loud with words on that rainy spring night, so Akaashi knew this had to be nerve-wracking, to put his feelings out there properly.   Bokuto was never that good with words.

“Kuroo…”

“Bokuto.”

“Kuroo.”

“…Bokuto.”

“Both of you.” Akaashi cut in before it could continue, squeezing Bokuto’s hand again. The other sighed and nodded, his head turning so his eyes met Kuroo’s.

“Kuroo, how would you feel about going out with me?” Bokuto finally said, his voice shaking. Akaashi gave his hand another squeeze, proud that he managed to finally say it out loud.

“But, you two…” Kuroo said, looking between the pair with his eyebrows furrowed.

“To be fair, I do like you as well, but I don’t know how you feel about me. Bokuto likes you, and you like Bokuto and I don’t mind sharing if it makes both of you happy to be together.” Akaashi explained, loosening his grip on Bokuto’s hand.

The silence fell over the three of them once again as Kuroo tried to wrap his head around the logistics of everything. The suspense was killing both Bokuto and Akaashi.

“This is not what I was expecting when I came looking for you guys.” He said quietly, a soft laugh escaping. A smile was tugging on the corners of his lips as he looked at the grass. Akaashi could tell his mind was racing, and Bokuto was unnaturally quiet. Finally, after what felt like hours, Kuroo lifted his head to look at the both of them. “Okay. Let’s give this a shot.”

Bokuto’s eyes widened, unable to believe that he had heard Kuroo right. His back straightened and it was obviously taking everything within him to remain calm.

“Really?”

Kuroo nodded, and Bokuto turned to Akaashi who only looked back up at him with a smile on his face. Akaashi may not have won Kuroo over just yet, but Bokuto looked like he had just won the lottery.


	2. long distance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day two - long distance ~~or roommates~~

“Has it been a week yet, Akaashi?” Bokuto asked quietly, lying on his back on the floor with a magazine lifted up over his face. He wasn’t really reading, more just looking at the pictures as a distraction.

Akaashi sighed from where he was sitting cross-legged on the bed, his math textbook opened in front of him along with his notebook.

“It’s been only a day.” He said quietly, rubbing his forehead. He had been working on his math homework since the two of them had arrived back to his house after school and he just wasn’t feeling it anymore. Bokuto’s low mood wasn’t helping in the slightest. With another sigh, he put his notebook inside of the textbook and tossed both books to the end of the bed where he had left his bag.

“It’s such a weird time to leave the country for a week and a half, though, you know?” Bokuto mumbled, bringing down the magazine to rest it on his chest.

“Yeah, it’s a bit strange going on holiday overseas after summer break is already over. Third year especially. Don’t both of you need to start doing college prep?”

Bokuto groaned and rolled over, completely crushing his magazine under him. “I don’t want to talk about college prep. We have nationals to deal with. Which is another reason why it’s so out of the blue, because nationals are coming up. You don’t leave the co-“

Bokuto was cut off by a sound coming from Akaashi’s desk, and it was then Akaashi realized that his laptop was open and running from that morning. Inwardly he kicked himself for leaving it on all day as he crawled off the bed and stepped across the room. When the screen lit up, he saw that he was receiving a video call from Kuroo, and a smile formed on his face as he slid into the desk chair and answered.

It took a few moments for the screen to catch up with the Internet and movements on both ends before there was a clear shot of Kuroo. He wasn’t looking at the camera at that moment; he looked like he was listening to someone sitting behind his laptop. It looked bright and early where he was; the sunrays were shining in from a window somewhere behind his laptop and illuminating his face with an orange glow. It was completely dark outside Akaashi’s window.

It was a few moments before Kuroo turned his attention to his camera, and a smile tugged at his lips. Bokuto shot up from the floor finally and tried to squish into the seat with Akaashi. Akaashi groaned and stood up, letting the other take the chair before perching himself in his lap.

“How was the flight?” Bokuto asked first, his arms slipping around Akaashi’s waist with his chin propped up on his shoulder. Akaashi fell back against Bokuto as he analyzed the boyfriend on screen. Aside from the orange glow from the sun, he looked pale and exhausted. Both could be tricks of the lighting, Akaashi hoped.

“Ah, it was alright. I’m still running on Japan time, and I didn’t sleep enough on the plane so I’m kind of out of it. It feels like it should be time to go to bed when we haven’t even gone to breakfast yet. I’m surprised you two are still awake, to be honest.”

Akaashi’s eyes moved to the clock at top corner of his laptop and nodded. It was much later than he had thought. It made more sense as to why he couldn’t concentrate on his math homework.

“Wait, what time is it there?” Bokuto asked, after having also checked the time.

Kuroo turned around and both Akaashi and Bokuto could see the two beds behind him.

“Just before seven in the morning. Mom just went down to check and see where the closest restaurant is; even though I know we’d much rather sleep than eat. But we are going to kick jet lag’s ass anyway. And this hotel doesn’t serve breakfast.”

“Why’d your mom decide to go on vacation now of all times?”

There was a pause that Akaashi barely caught before Kuroo answered Bokuto’s question. “Apparently some cousin of mine is getting hitched and we were invited, or something…” he trailed off, a frown taking over his features for a moment before fading completely as though it wasn’t there. “I think she was using it as an excuse to get away from work, to be honest.” He shrugged as a smile found it’s way back on his face. “Babe, you look like you’re about to fall asleep.” He said, his voice softer than it had been.

Akaashi raised his eyebrow before he glanced to the smaller video screen to see Bokuto’s eyes drooping shut beside him. He couldn’t stop the small smile that appeared on his own face.

“Practice was nuts today.” Akaashi said, speaking softly as to not disturb Bokuto.

“M’okay.” Bokuto mumbled, though his eyelids were clearly as heavy as concrete as he just couldn’t keep them open. He did, however, tighten his grip around Akaashi’s middle.

Kuroo looked on with a content smile on his face, although wanted more than anything to be in between the two instead of being across the Pacific.

As Bokuto dozed and continued to use Akaashi’s back as a pillow, Akaashi and Kuroo talked. They talked quietly about anything and everything that they could think of, from Kuroo’s plane ride and the screaming child that kept kicking the back of his seat, to the spike that Bokuto had done during practice that even Akaashi could feel was the best he’d done all season.

It wasn’t until Akaashi himself had started to doze off in front of the laptop that Kuroo decided to end the call. The former was reluctant, because he didn’t want to say goodbye, but he knew that Kuroo had things to do as well.

Closing his laptop, he shifted in Bokuto’s lap to stir the other awake enough to pull him to the bed. There was a bit of difficulty, but once they both fell onto the mattress, they were both out cold, wishing that Kuroo was with them.


	3. victory and loss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day three - victory ~~or~~ and loss
> 
>  
> 
> sorry in advance

Nationals.

Nationals had been something that Bokuto, Akaashi, and Kuroo had all been aiming for, and they were finally there.

The battle was tough, but they made it to the final stage, along side Karasuno, whom they’d practiced with during training camp. Both Bokuto and Akaashi could see the excitement on Kuroo’s face when he stepped onto the court one to face off against Nekoma’s long time rivals in an official match.

The pair sitting in the audience had heard the history between Nekoma and Karasuno, and to see both teams radiating more energy than they’d seen during the whole tournament so far, they knew they were going to be in for a good game.

And it was. It was an intense game with long rallies and a close score. Karasuno wasn’t the same team it had been the first time they had met with Nekoma, or Fukurodani for that matter. They were stronger and played harder, and Bokuto smiled to himself as he thought back to the training camp, helping the tall blond saltshaker with his blocks and the small excitable ginger with his spikes. All that training in the third gym was really paying off as Nekoma broke past a block to turn the game around. Bokuto cheered, Akaashi whistled.

Nekoma took the first set and Karasuno took the second. The third set went on for what felt like hours. Boktuo and Akaashi both were sitting on the edge of their seats, hanging over the railing as they watched the ball go from one end of the net to the other. When they thought Nekoma had the match in the bag, Karasuno would come back with a vengeance and tie up the game. The second set had been the only set to not go well over 25 points, and now in the third, it was tied at 30-30. Bokuto was biting his nails and Akaashi was hiding behind his hands as they both watched Kuroo bent over, hands on his knees. He looked like he was about to keel over, but he forced a grin on his face as he looked across the net to Karasuno.

“Kenma, nice serve!” he shouted before the quiet setter behind him reluctantly served the ball over the net.

And the game continued.

30-31 Nekoma.

31-31.

32-31 Karasuno.

“I can’t watch this anymore.” Akaashi groaned, his head falling forward to completely hide in his arms. “This is too much. The suspense is too much.”

“They’ll win. Nekoma will win.” Bokuto said, reaching over blindly to place one of his hands on Akaashi’s shoulder. He really wasn’t sure who would win. He’d love to face off against either team, of course, but he’d also love for his own boyfriend to win.

Suddenly before Karasuno could send over the serve, Bokuto watched as Kuroo signaled to the coach for a time out. Boktuo leaned forward, squinting, as Kuroo walked over to the courtside. He couldn’t tell what was going on, but another Nekoma member was walking onto the court was Kuroo left the gym.

“Eh? What?” Bokuto was quick to get on his feet, pulling a very confused Akaashi along. “There is no reason for Kuroo to walk off the court. He didn’t get injured.”

“He did what?”

The pair ran down the steps to the main floor just in time to find Kuroo running into the men’s washroom. Bokuto was about to make a crude joke before he heard one of the stall doors slam. Both of them hurried into the washroom in time to hear awful retching coming from the only occupied stall.

“Kuroo?” Akaashi asked as they stepped in. He could see his feet under the door as he knelt in front of the toilet.

There was a sob on the other side followed by another awful sound as Bokuto and Akaashi eyed each other wearily.

“Fuck... Shit, fuck.” Kuroo continued to curse, a loud bang sounding through the small bathroom as he slammed his hand down on the toilet seat. “Fuck!”

“Tetsu…” Bokuto tried. He wasn’t sure if Kuroo was aware that they were both there.

There was another sob from inside the stall. Akaashi could feel his heart breaking at the sound; he’d never heard someone sound so broken.

Slowly but surely, the stall door opened and the pair found their boyfriend sitting down on the floor in front of the toilet. His face was pale and sweaty, there was blood dripping from his nose and Bokuto was quick to step over Kuroo and kick the flush on the toilet with his foot. Akaashi’s eyes widened as he hurried to grab a bunch of paper towel from the sink area.

“What in the world is going on?” he asked as he returned, kneeling down beside Kuroo, whom had his head propped against the stall wall. “If you were feeling sick…”

Kuroo slowly shook his head as he took the paper towel from Akaashi. “I was feeling okay, which is a lot better than how I usually feel.” He said, his voice hoarse from throwing up. “I over did it. I didn’t think the sets were going to go on that long.”

“I think they’re still going on.” Bokuto mumbled as he heard the whistle blow, short and quick to signal for the next serve.

“Jesus. We shouldn’t have taught Karasuno anything.” Kuroo said, his eyes drooping closed.

“Why did this happen?” Akaashi ventured, not sure if he was ready to hear the answer. This wasn’t normal for anyone, overdoing it or not.

Kuroo pulled the paper towel away from his face and inspected the blood. He hadn’t known he had been bleeding, he thought the red was coming from his mouth. Though he knew very well that it could have been coming from both. His eyes burned as he thought about the words he had to say, to explain what he hadn’t explained yet to his partners. He turned the paper towel to a clean spot before placing it back against his nose and taking a deep breath through his mouth.

“I’ve been very sick for the last year.” He stated. “Last summer over holidays I blacked out during vacation or something, I don’t even remember, it’s a foggy memory. I was at the beach I think and I just blacked out. Mom thought it was because I was dehydrated, even though I had been drinking water constantly. That wasn’t the issue but when I came back around in the backseat of the car, she kind of stopped worrying I guess and we put it off. Kenma was with me that trip, I remember that much, and when we got back he kept worrying about me. And Kenma normally doesn’t show that side of himself, but he was genuinely concerned.”

There was a brief pause as Kuroo caught his breath, and Bokuto heard the whistle finally ending the match in the gym. Akaashi continued to kneel next to Kuroo, listening to the story intently.

“It happened again a couple months later during warm ups, though that time I could feel it coming on. I managed to keep myself together until I got to the clubroom. It felt like the world was closing in on me and everything was spinning. There were black spots in my vision. I knew that time I was definitely not dehydrated. It wasn’t hot, I had been drinking water and we hadn’t been warming up that long. I skipped practice that day and went to the hospital on my own accord, because I was concerned. But all the same, I didn’t what to know why this was happening.”

The crowds from the gymnasium started to fill the hallway outside of the bathroom and the echoing and hooting and hollering of everyone’s voices started to fill the small room. Bokuto crouched down beside Akaashi to hear Kuroo better. They’d ask him to move, but it didn’t seem like he was ready to.

“They ran me through the wringer of tests. They took so many vials of blood, MRIs, CT scans, biopsies. I learned that a colonoscopy is not anything like getting laid and that was a real let down.”

Bokuto couldn’t help but snort at that, and it was nice to see a small smile grow on Kuroo’s face.  

“Finally they found the leukemia.” Kuroo finally said quietly, the smile falling as he pulled the paper towel back from his face. “I was being treated for it for a while over the winter break, but it wasn’t really having an effect. And I was petrified I’d lose my hair, but somehow it stayed. If anything, I was just getting sicker, like this.” he opened his arms to prove his point. “And then suddenly it kind of backed off on it’s own. I thought, hey, this is great! The treatment did work; it just took its sweet ass time to send me into remission. And I felt great. I felt back to my normal self. And I knew it was weird, I couldn’t even believe it. And the doctors were really confused about it, but they didn’t want to really question it either. They kept me on some pills to keep everything else under control, and I still had bad days, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. And it helped knowing what was causing it.”

There was another pause, and as Kuroo started to speak, they heard footsteps at the entrance of the bathroom. Kenma walked in with two bags slung over his shoulder and a water bottle in his hand. He set the second bag down and Bokuto immediately recognized it as Kuroo’s. Kenma handed the water bottle over to Kuroo, who gratefully took it.

“Who won?” Kuroo asked, looking up at his best friend.

“Us, obviously. Shouyou is crying though, and you seem a bit busy here, so I’ll be out in the lobby with him. The team said they’d wait for you, so take all the time you need and don’t rush.”

Kuroo sighed quietly as Kenma left the bathroom. “Is it bad I kind of wished we’d lose? Especially in the last set. I’m gonna be benched the entire game tomorrow, probably. Benching the captain at nationals for a whole match. It feels like a loss already. Just…”

“Hey, hey.” Bokuto said quietly, shuffling forward and reaching for the hand Akaashi had contemplated taking a while ago. Bokuto brushed his lips against Kuroo’s knuckles, despite the dirt and grime that had probably made it’s way onto Kuroo’s hand by sitting on the bathroom floor and touching the public toilet beside them. “Even if you’re not on the court, you’re still going to be there to support your team. Nekoma is strong, and we’re gonna kick your ass into next year.”

Kuroo laughed quietly at that before turning his head away from the both of them.

“When I went overseas a couple months ago, it was right after I collapsed again. And I have to say I hid that well. And we _did_ go for a wedding, you saw the photos, but it coincided with meeting up with another family member who is cancer specialist. She was pretty optimistic about this new drug, and so was I to be honest. I felt better than I did before after she put me on this new medication. It’s my fault I’m in this state though. I kept being told I could still play volleyball but not to over do it. Training camp wrecked me, which is why I collapsed.   And I couldn’t figure out a way to explain all of this to both of you, after starting a brand new relationship and all.” Kuroo finally turned his head back to face Bokuto and Akaashi, and the pair could see the tears welling in Kuroo’s eyes that he refused to let fall. “And here we are, because I over did it today.”

“Kuroo…” Akaashi started, his voice cracking slightly after not speaking for what felt like hours. “If you ever need anything…”

“We’re always here for you.” Bokuto finished with a smile, which is what let Kuroo’s tears finally fall down his cheeks.

They stayed quiet for a short while as Kuroo calmed himself down, and as Bokuto and Akaashi tried to wrap their heads around all the information they had just been given.

“Can one of you grab my toothbrush and toothpaste from my bag? I would like to get out of this unsanitary bathroom as soon as possible. It just hit me where we were, and part of this sickness is my shitty immune system.” Kuroo finally asked, scrunching his nose.

Akaashi nodded and quickly searched the front pocket of Kuroo’s bag as Bokuto got up and helped Kuroo to his feet. Kuroo’s legs shook slightly under his own weight as he took Bokuto’s arm and stepped towards the sink. He looked at himself in the mirror and cringed at the pale face staring back. The fluorescent lighting wasn’t doing him any favours by illuminating the dark circles under his eyes and the pink splotches on his cheeks and the tip of his nose. There were streaks of blood still under his nose and at the corner of his mouth that he hadn’t been aware of. He leaned forward and splashed water over his face before taking the toothbrush from Akaashi.

It took a few minutes to get ready before Bokuto offered his back for the other to climb up on. Akaashi slung Kuroo’s bag over his shoulder as the three of them left the bathroom and made their way to the lobby where Kenma said everyone would be waiting.

The lobby, however, was empty, aside from one excitable ginger clinging onto Kenma; his arms were slung loosely around the shorter boy.

“Is everything okay?” he asked, causing Hinata to jump slightly at the sudden question. He turned around in Kenma’s arms and his eyes widened at the sight of Bokuto carrying Kuroo on his back.

“Yeah, I’ll be okay. Where is everyone?” Kuroo asked, his voice still hoarse, but by no means as bad as it had been.

“They wanted some air, so they’re outside by the buses. Karasuno hung around as well, so they’re probably dicking around. They don’t know why you went off court so suddenly though, just Shouyou does.”

“Don’t worry, Kuroo-san. I’m sure Daichi has everyone under control.” Hinata spoke up with a grin, which was contagious enough to have the other three in front of him smiling as well.

“Between him and Yaku, I’m not too worried.”


	4. love songs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day four - love songs ~~or romcoms~~

Nationals had ended and Fukurodani had been the victor against Nekoma. But with the upcoming holidays, the former hadn’t had a chance for a proper party. But Bokuto and Akaashi were more worried about Kuroo than having a party anyway. They’d plan something later.

Kuroo, however, was trying to get them to throw one. But Bokuto and Akaashi kept their foot down, and Kuroo finally deflated when they said they’d think about it for the upcoming holidays.

Without talk of parties to get between them, the trio spent more time together now that the major tournament was over. They had chances to see each other more outside of practice matches, and one weekend, Kuroo found himself spending the weekend staying at Bokuto’s house along with Akaashi.

Akaashi had gone out to grab some food for all of them, and the two remaining had been sitting in the living room playing video games for a while until finally Bokuto threw down his controller with a groan.

“Kuroooo, you need to stop watching Kenma so closely. You just beat me in Mario Kart ten times in a row!”

Kuroo laughed softly as he reached to set the controller down nicely on the coffee table that sat between the couch and the television.

“Well, sorry that my best friend is kind of a genius at video games and tells me all the tips and tricks.” Bokuto frowned and crossed his arms in front of his chest and Kuroo sighed, leaning over to capture the other’s lips in a quick kiss. “I’m sorry. We can do something else.”

Bokuto’s facial expression immediately changed as he took Kuroo’s suggestion in the completely wrong direction. “Oh ho?” was all that left his mouth as he wiggled his eyebrows.

Kuroo raised his eyebrow back at his boyfriend before shaking his head. “No, no. Not right now.” He said, looking towards the television and the consoles surrounding it. “What’s that one?” he asked after a moment with a bit of a frown, pointing at a larger system under the Nintendo.

A grin slowly grew on Bokuto’s face as he jumped up from the couch. He stayed surprisingly quiet as he walked over and switched the TV’s input over to the strange machine. Kuroo watched from the couch in curiosity as Bokuto reached behind the machine as music started to play, and laughter immediately escaped.

Bokuto turned around with a microphone in hand and began to sing.

“ _You are, my fiiiiire._ ”

“Holy shit, you would have a karaoke machine.” Kuroo said as he watched Bokuto swaying in front of him.

“ _The one, desiiiiiire. Believe, when I say….”_

“And you have the fucking song memorized.” He cried as Bokuto was most definitely not watching the screen where the lyrics were.

“ _I WANT IT THAT WAY_.”

It was midway through Bokuto’s beautiful rendition of the classic Backstreet Boy’s song that Akaashi walked through the front door and to the living room doorway with two bags of food in his hands. He stopped dead in his tracks as he watched Bokuto on his knees in front of Kuroo, who was still sitting on the couch. Bokuto held the microphone tightly in his hands as he belted out the final chorus of the song.

As the song ended, Akaashi slowly tried to back out of the room without making a single noise, but the convenience store bag rustled against his jeans and he quietly cursed. Kuroo and Bokuto’s eyes were on him immediately, and Kuroo was off of the couch in seconds as Bokuto made his way back to the karaoke machine to fiddle with the buttons.

“Welcome back, _darling_.” Kuroo purred as he pulled Akaashi into the living room, slinking his arm around his shoulder to steer him to the couch. He had no idea what he had missed, but he really regretted coming back as another song started playing through the speakers. Kuroo turned to Bokuto and his eyes widened. “No way.”

“Way.”

“Do you have another…” Kuroo began to ask as Bokuto handed him the second microphone.

And Akaashi sat back on the couch in both awe and horror as he watched both Kuroo and Bokuto sing. Bokuto was terribly off key, but Kuroo surprisingly stayed in tune.

Their harmonizing was terrible.

“ _Don’t want to close my eeeeeyes, I don’t want to fall asleep cause I miss you baby, and I don’t wanna miss a thiiiiing_.” They both wailed into the microphones. Akaashi was glad they weren’t turned on and were only there for show, especially with their volume rising as the song continued.

Akaashi couldn’t help but cringe as Bokuto tried to hit the higher notes near the end. But he wasn’t going to complain, because while they were no good together, the smiles on their faces was enough to keep him sitting on the couch with their dinner cooling down in the grocery bags between his feet.

As the song came to an end the two in front of Akaashi were laughing, but then Bokuto’s eyes were on him and he felt scared. A wicked grin grew on Bokuto’s face as he turned back to the machine, and Kuroo set down the microphone to take a spot on the couch to catch his breath.

Within the first few chords of the song, Akaashi’s heart skipped and he couldn’t help but glare at Bokuto, who watched him with a widening grin. It was a song that had to be programmed in manually one day after Bokuto had overheard Akaashi singing to himself in the clubroom when he thought he had been alone. But now with Bokuto’s eyes on him, along with Kuroo’s, Akaashi found himself standing up and snatching the microphone out of Bokuto’s hands, still glaring at him.

Akaashi didn’t like to sing in front of people, even if those people were his boyfriends.

“ _Every winter was endlessly cold, till I found you…_ ” He sang quietly, the music nearly drowning him out.

“I know you can be louder than that!” Bokuto said as he sat down on the couch beside Kuroo, who was clapping. Akaashi cleared his throat before the next line.

“ _I was neglected, I was on my own till I found you_.”

“I didn’t know he could sing.” Kuroo whispered quietly, leaning towards Bokuto as Akaashi continued singing in front of them, his eyes closed to ignore both of them.

“It’s honestly a shame he doesn’t sing more.” Bokuto mumbled back, eyes not leaving Akaashi once.

“ _And if hope can call my name, I’m just saying, it can call yours too. I was lost, I was afraid, I was angry, until I found you._ ” Akaashi continued to sing, opening his eyes back up to look at both Kuroo and Bokuto. “ _I found you._ ”

Akaashi lowered the microphone as the song played out, and Kuroo sat speechless on the couch, eyes wide. He looked between the boy standing in front of him and the other sitting beside him, before back to the former.

“Guys, I think I just fell in love with Akaashi.”

At Kuroo’s words, Akaashi fumbled with the microphone and Bokuto’s head whipped towards Kuroo so quickly that whiplash was definitely a possible outcome. Kuroo and Akaashi hadn’t really discussed or remotely touched base on the topic of the relationship between the two since the three of them started their relationship. They called one another boyfriends to make it easier to explain to those close to them, but the relationship between the two hadn’t exactly progressed.

“What?” Akaashi managed to ask, his voice shaking as he finally set the microphone down before he dropped it.

“I think I just fell in love with you.” He repeated, cheeks burning red and heart racing. His palms here sweaty, and Bokuto was still sitting with his head whipping back and forth.

“Because I sang?”

“Have you _heard_ yourself?” Kuroo asked. “I got chills.”

Without another word, Akaashi stepped over to the couch, gripped the back of Kuroo’s head and brought him in for a kiss. And to his delight, Kuroo kissed back.

And Bokuto was still sitting beside them both with his jaw on the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [song one](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fndeDfaWCg)   
>  [song two](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkK8g6FMEXE)   
>  [song three](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQPSK2UHlsQ)


	5. high school activities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day five - high school activities ~~or college parties~~

At the exact same time, Akaashi and Bokuto’s phones started to ring with emails and text messages. They looked at one another curiously before grabbing their respective phones.

“Kenma is telling me to absolutely not go to Nekoma today, no matter what Kuroo says.” Akaashi said, reading over the simple words before looking towards Bokuto.

“Kuroo is begging us to go to Nekoma today for the culture festival. The volleyball club has something going on and we need to go, apparently.” Bokuto read, looking over at Akaashi.

The decision didn’t take very long, and soon they were on their way to Kuroo’s school.

“What do you think the volleyball team is doing?” Bokuto asked as they stepped onto the Nekoma High grounds.

There were people buzzing about, students in uniforms holding large signs of events around the school, and red and black balloons hanging from trees. The air was cool that afternoon, and the two boys were glad to step into the high school just as the wind picked up.

The halls were even busier than the outside walkways. It was hard to see around people, and Akaashi almost considered climbing up on Bokuto’s back to get a better view. He didn’t want to draw more attention to either of them though, as they had arrived in their own school jackets and there were some glares aimed in their direction.

Some volleyball fans were still bitter over the Nekoma loss, it seemed.

“I asked Kuroo where he’d be but he hasn’t answered, so I guess he’s busy.” Bokuto said, looking at his phone for the millionth time since they had arrived.

“Well, maybe we’ll find a sign pointing us in the direction of the volleyball team?” Akaashi suggested, his head whipping around for any kind of clue.

“Fukurodani?”

The pair slowly turned around at the sound of a voice behind them, both unsure of who they were going to find. They both let out a quiet breath of relief at the sight of the Nekoma libero, Yaku, standing in front of them.

“You two looking for Kuroo, I assume?” he asked, crossing his arms. It was then Akaashi realized his outfit.

“You’re looking sharp, Yaku-san.” He complimented with a nod. “What in the world is the club doing?”

“Ah…” the smaller boy scratched the back of his head as he looked down at his suit. “He didn’t tell you?”

“He told us we absolutely had to come to the school today for the festival.” Bokuto said, gesturing to Akaashi. “While Kenma said to absolutely _not_ show up.”

“So that’s what they were arguing about…” Yaku mumbled to himself before smiling. “Well, come with me. You’re in for a treat. And it’s still early, we haven’t been too busy which is how I managed to escape to get some fresh air.”

The pair followed Yaku through the crowd and up the stairs to the second floor of the high school. It looked as though every room had something different going on.

“Oh! Before I forget, we, and by we I mean our lovely captain, kind of went over budget on some things so we don’t really have much to offer…” Yaku said off handedly as they turned the corner down another hallway, much less busy than the last.

“Eh? Offer?” Akaashi asked, more confused now. What was the team doing?

They finally came to a halt at the end of the last hall. There were only a few people around so far, and they could hear whooping and hollering inside the classroom. Outside the classroom was a poster board, inviting them into the café. It was all decked out in gaudy sparkles and light green marker that didn’t show up well on hot pink poster paper. Whoever had made it had zero art skills, or was colour blind, if not both.

“All your budget went to this beautiful sign, didn’t it?” Bokuto asked as Akaashi elbowed him in the side.

“Definitely.” Yaku agreed quickly before parting the black curtain covering the door to take them inside.

Upon entering, Yaku cleared his throat and two people came rushing forward.

“Welcome home, master!” they both said, one more enthusiastic than the next, bowing low.

Akaashi looked at Bokuto with a raised eyebrow, as Bokuto cocked his head to the side to understand what was going on.

In front of them, the two that had rushed forward stood up properly to hold out laminated menus. Kenma’s face was as red as their volleyball uniform and was currently decked out in the most basic black maid costume one could find. There was a pair of cat ears with bells atop his head that jingled as he moved. Inuoka looked to be enjoying himself far too much.

“I told you not to come,” Kenma mumbled before turning around, the skirt of the outfit spinning as he did so.

“We couldn’t turn down an invitation from Kuroo.” Bokuto said, following after Kenma as he dropped their menus on a desk, which had been covered with a really ugly pink plaid tablecloth along with all the other desks in the classroom.

Akaashi and Bokuto sat down in the chairs provided and Kenma walked away without another word, arms crossed as he walked back to the front of the classroom.

“He seems to be enjoying himself.” Akaashi said as another maid came to their table. Akaashi’s hand covered his face automatically.

“Lev, are you wearing a children’s costume?” Bokuto asked, eyes wide.

Lev looked down and pushed down on his skirt and groaned. He was thankfully wearing shorts underneath.

“This is so embarrassing. I am too tall for this, but they refused to let me wear a suit because I am a first year.” He groaned before shaking his head. “Anyway, we have tea, coffee, water, soda, muffins and these really gross, I mean delicious, cookies?”

“Uhhh, well if they’re delicious, I’ll take the a muffin. And tea.” Akaashi said, eyeing Bokuto who nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll have what he’s having. And where is Kuroo?” Bokuto asked, looking around the room. Yaku was the only third year in sight.

“Oh, Yamamoto was yelling because my sister showed up and he got embarrassed, and so Kuroo had to take him out of the room. But my sister already left, so they should be back soon.” Lev explained before walking to the hidden back area of the classroom. There was a curtained off area where the teacher’s desk should be.

“This is all rather strange.” Akaashi mumbled as he looked around. There were only two other people in the room other than them, and the first and second year maids were mostly hanging around the entrance, uncomfortable and waiting.

Lev came back after a moment with the muffins and tea just as Kuroo and Yamamoto walked back into the room. The second year looked completely disgruntled in his beautiful maid costume as he shoved his cat ears over his mohawk.

“Oh! You came!” Kuroo said, rushing to their table with a grin and eyed the muffins. “Oh thank god, you didn’t get the cookies. I don’t know what went wrong.”

“I mean, I heard they were delicious. But I was just really feeling the muffins, you know?” Akaashi said with a smirk as he broke off a piece of the chocolate chip muffin. “Did you make them yourself? The cookies, I mean.”

“I absolutely did no such thing.” Kuroo said, a little too quickly before glancing up at the rest of his team at the front of the room, but it was too late. Akaashi had raised his eyebrow at knowing the truth and Bokuto hadn’t kept his eyes off of Kuroo since he had spotted him.

“Tetsu…” Bokuto started, startling both Kuroo and Akaashi. “Can I just be the first to say you look really amazing in a suit?”

And he did. It fit him in all the right places, and his normal bed hair actually fit the part quite nicely.

Kuroo laughed quietly and leaned over to steal a quick kiss from Bokuto. “You’re just saying that because you have to. I mean have you _seen_ Kenma?”

“Don’t even talk about me, I hate you!” Kenma called from the front of the room, and Kuroo only rolled his eyes.

“He does look pretty adorable.” Akaashi admitted a bit loudly, leaning forward on the table, his chin in his hands.  He had hoped the sulking boy at the front of the room heard, to give him some sort of a confidence boost.

“Hinata’s been pestering me for a photo all day and Kenma hasn’t been cooperating. As soon as I go anywhere near him with my phone just in my hand, not even on, he walks to the other end of the room.” Kuroo said quietly, hoping the younger boy wouldn’t overhear him.

“Well, good luck with your mission.” Akaashi said, reaching for his tea.

“Welcome home, Master.” the voices from the front of the room had the three turning their heads towards them. There was a pack of three girls standing at the entrance, cheeks bright pink as they looked at the maids standing in front of them.

“They’re so cute!” one exclaimed as the small group followed Kenma to a table before settling down.

“Look at the butler!” another whispered, or tried to whisper but Akaashi, Bokuto, and Kuroo had all heard her. The former two looked up at their butler boyfriend who had a grin growing on his face.

“I’m gonna go help these girls, I’ll be right back.” Kuroo said, slipping around the table before stopping in his tracks. He turned around and walked back up to Akaashi. Without a word, he leaned forward to press a quick kiss to his lips before pulling away to the sound of the girls squealing. Akaashi raised his eyebrows as he looked up at Kuroo, a million questions wanting to leave but none coming out. “I didn’t actually greet you properly, but I kissed Kou, so it’s only fair. And I feel like I’m gonna get a good tip.” Kuroo mumbled before standing up straight and clearing his throat.

As he walked away, Akaashi cocked his head and turned to Bokuto and tried to drown out the squealing girls a few tables away as Kuroo helped them.

“He’s getting tips?” Bokuto asked after a moment, and Akaashi’s eyes widened at the fact that _that_ was what he questioned.


	6. festivals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day six - ~~tournaments or~~ festivals
> 
> my time line is all screwed up if you haven't noticed. yikes.

The winter had come and the air was crisp, but the snow had yet to fall. Akaashi bundled himself up tighter in his jacket and shoved his face farther into the red knit scarf Kuroo had given him for Christmas the week before.

Akaashi was standing at the base of a mile of stairs. At least it looked like a mile in the dark. He checked his phone again and sighed in relief, as there was finally a message from Kuroo and Bokuto to say that they were five minutes away. The message had been received three minutes earlier.

Akaashi danced back and forth on his feet to keep warm, shoving his hands deeper into the pockets of his peacoat and cursed that he hadn’t worn another layer under his two layers of pants.

“Akaaaaaaashi!” a familiar voice called out from behind and he whipped around to see the silhouette of his two boyfriends making their way towards him.

“It took you long enough.” He mumbled once they were next to him.

Kuroo looked at Bokuto, and Bokuto looked at Kuroo, and as though they had communicated by telepathy, the two sandwiched Akaashi between them to give him a little body heat. Akaashi was glad the streets on this side of the shrine were empty, because to any onlookers, it would have looked quite awkward.

After a short time, the three broke apart and started their ascent to the top of the hill. As they got closer to the top, music and voices could be heard. There were lanterns in all of the trees surrounding the shrine, as well as vendors selling food, masks and booths with games. The festival was one of the bigger ones in the neighborhood, but still small in terms of general festivals.

The trio walked by the food first and the three of them all decided on cups of hot chocolate to keep their bodies warm. They all stood to the side out of the way as they enjoyed their drinks and watched everyone else around them. There were children chasing one another with different coloured dinosaur masks. There were people laughing, singing, and dancing. There were people at the shrine tossing in coin before clapping their hands together in prayer.

The three boys stayed quiet as they took everything around them in and enjoyed one another’s company but once they had finished their drinks, they once more started to wander around.

They found their way up to the shrine a short while later and each of them threw in a five-yen coin. Clapping their hands in front of them, they bowed their head and each thought of different things for the New Year.

Akaashi checked his phone once they had stepped down before looking to the other two boys beside him. “We should go find a clearing before the fireworks.”

With a silent nod from the other two, who were buried in their respective scarves, they set off up the hill higher to find somewhere to sit in the direction the fireworks would be set off. Families with younger children had already taken the good places, so the boy’s continued to climb up the hill despite their protesting, tired legs.

Finally they found a bench overlooking the firework area that hadn’t been snatched up. There was a bench hidden between some trees, and had Bokuto not been paying attention, they would have walked right by it.

“How much longer until they start?” Kuroo asked once they had sat down. They kept close to one another to keep their heat together. Bokuto was the warmest of the three of them and sat between Akaashi and Kuroo, who clung to his side like their lives depended on it.

“There was twenty minutes when we started to get up here, so probably another ten.” Akaashi said quietly, resting his head against Bokuto’s shoulder. The city lights below sparkled bright and the scene was one he’d never get tired of.

There was a comfortable silence between the three as they all looked out over the city and waited for the firework show, until Kuroo spoke up.

“I want to thank you guys for the last few months.” He said quietly. Akaashi lifted his head from Bokuto’s shoulder to listen easier. “The last year and a half was pretty rough, but you two made it way more bearable. So thank you.”

Bokuto turned to Kuroo with a grin before leaning to press his lips against the boy’s cheek.

“Well my five yen went to your good health, in hopes that it stays where it is now.” He said, wrapping his arm around Kuroo to pull him closer. Akaashi glanced at Bokuto with wide eyes before looking at Kuroo.

“Apparently we were on the same train of thought.” He said quietly before the first firework shot up.

Silently, the trio turned towards the fireworks shooting up in front of them and exploding in every colour imaginable. Gold and silver sparkled down to earth before blues and reds joined them. The boy’s eyes were wide as they watched as though they had reverted back to being small children once more.

As the fireworks continued, Akaashi turned back to his two boyfriends and watched them looking up, purples and pinks reflecting off of their faces. And in that moment, it was his turn to feel like he had won the lottery.

Bokuto was the first one to notice Akaashi’s eyes on him and he smiled.

“Happy New Year.” Akaashi mumbled quietly before leaning up to kiss the other. And the kiss continued until they both could feel a pair of eyes boring into them.

Breaking away, Bokuto turned around and kissed Kuroo with a jumbled up, “Happy New Year.” Spoken against his lips.

And as they broke apart, Kuroo kept things going and leaned across Bokuto to capture Akaashi’s lips with his own, and the latter was more than happy to reciprocate.

“And happy New Year to you.” Kuroo said softly as he backed away, smile on his face. “You know, I have a _really_ good feeling about this year.”

The firework show ended soon after and the three boys’s decided to not stick around in the cold any longer.


	7. goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> day seven - ~~crossover / alternate universe /~~ your choice

Akaashi woke with a start, eyes wide and a layer of sweat forming on his skin. He turned his head to see Bokuto sleeping peacefully at his side before turning back to look up at the ceiling and to calm his nerves.

He ended up staying up the rest of the night, and watched in curiosity as things happened for the second time. It was a never-ending day of déjà vu, and Akaashi was growing more and more uncomfortable as he walked through the large gymnasium between other volleyball players and spectators alike.

“We should go see Kuroo before the match starts.” Bokuto suggested, and Akaashi whipped his head to the side to look at him. He should have seen that coming.

“Y-yeah.”

Bokuto turned to look at Akaashi with his eyebrows furrowing. “Are you alright?”

Nodding quickly, Akaashi let himself be tugged towards the swarm of cats in red jackets at the end of the hallway. There were a few black crows mingling in with them. Kuroo noticed them first and a grin spread across his face as he jumped up from the bench he had been sitting on.

Bokuto’s hand left Akaashi’s, and just like before, he felt a bit unsteady. But he watched Bokuto and Kuroo hug tightly, before he was seeing red. His heart started hammering against his chest as he realized that Kuroo’s jacket had covered his eyes, and it was okay.

“Good luck today!” Bokuto said once the three of them had separated their limbs.

“Oh? Want to lose against us that badly tomorrow, huh?” Kuroo shot back with a playful smirk.

“Eh? What are you saying? I didn’t hear you over that last defeat.” Bokuto leaned forward with his hand to an ear, squinting. Akaashi couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the two.

But then he gulped and remembered. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down as he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“You okay? You look like you’re going to be sick.” Kuroo said quietly, and Akaashi was quick to shake his head. He wasn’t the one that was sick.

“I’m okay. I didn’t sleep very well, that’s all.” He said quietly, wanting to get off of the topic quickly.

“You know you didn’t have to come.” Kuroo added, and Akaashi shook his head more.

“Of course I _didn’t_ have to, but I wanted to be here in support of Nekoma, even though,” Akaashi looked up through his lashes at Kuroo and played down a grin, despite all the weird emotions eating at him, “we are clearly going to kick your ass tomorrow.”

Kuroo gasped in mock offense before laughing. “Sure, sure. We’ll see about that tomorrow. Hell, for all we know, you could be up against Karasuno.”

And just like last time, a small, over excitable bird squealed and detached himself from Nekoma’s setter at hearing his team name leave the captains mouth.

They soon left the teams to get ready for warm ups, and once more Akaashi let himself be pulled through the gym and up to the stands to find the right spot. And they found the exact same spot again, and Akaashi was becoming more uncomfortable as the exact same warm ups and the exact same teams took the court. Nationals were happening _again_ , which meant he was in a match tomorrow _again_.

Deep down he hoped the outcome would be different. That Nekoma wouldn’t end their match with Kuroo in the bathroom, sick and collapsed on the floor. That Nekoma would have a strong team throughout the match, and that Akaashi wouldn’t be hounded with bad thoughts of Kuroo half way across Tokyo, in pain and without any help from Bokuto or himself.

Akaashi shook his head again before resting it against Bokuto’s shoulder.

“You’re really tired, hey?” Bokuto asked softly, turning his head to peck the top of Akaashi’s. Akaashi could only nod uncomfortably against the shoulder.

Thankfully the match started sooner than later, and the pair began cheering the team on. Though, it was hard to pick sides half the time, what with Karasuno gaining so much experience in such a relatively short amount of time. He still couldn’t get over Kageyama and Hinata’s crazy quick, and he noticed Bokuto watching the small first year with a proud smile on his face as his spike passed through Kuroo’s block.

It took a few seconds for him to realize what had happened before taking back his proud smile and groaning.

“Damn you, Hinata!” he cried, though countered it almost immediately with, “I am _so proud_ of you.”

Bokuto was more torn over the match than Akaashi, it seemed, though it kept his mind off of what had been bothering him up until that point. Things were looking up, and starting to feel different, and Kuroo seemed way livelier on the court than he had been before. Last time. Was it a dream? Akaashi wasn’t sure what the hell was going on in the slightest, and it seemed that no one else knew either.

And just like last time, Nekoma took the first set while Karasuno took the second. And the pair found themselves on the edge of their seats as the game played out exactly the same as it did before, and a feeling of dread started to set in and Akaashi could feel it deep within his bones.

As the third set started past the 25 mark, Akaashi’s eyes didn’t leave Kuroo, no matter what kind of plays were being made by either team. Akaashi couldn’t remember how Kuroo looked clearly the first time, but once the score read 31-32 for Karasuno, Akaashi waited.

And waited.

And waited.

But Kuroo didn’t signal for a member change, and Tanaka served the ball over the net. And Nekoma scored.

And Akaashi sat wide-eyed as things continued playing out completely unlike the first time. Was it a dream?

And just like last time, the final score ended up being 35-37 for Nekoma, and Bokuto and Akaashi jumped up and cheered as the whistle blew, but suddenly Akaashi noticed Kuroo collapse on the court and he found his legs carrying him out of the stands, his hand barely gripping Bokuto’s as he ran for the stairs.

Why had he collapsed?

Was this happening again?

He didn’t want to watch Kuroo be sick again. He didn’t want to watch him suffering like that.

“Akaashi, hold on, where are we going?” Bokuto cried as he tried to keep his balance going down the stairs. One wrong step and he could have rolled down the flight and wound up in the hospital.

“Kuroo fell down.”

“Eh?”

They ran down the hall to the door where Nekoma and Karasuno had gone into the gym and peer inside. Kuroo was once again on his feet with his team around him, large grin on his face and looking healthier than ever.

“He’s not sick…” Akaashi said, loud enough for Bokuto to hear. The other’s head whipped towards him with a curious look and turned back to watch Kuroo with his team.

“Is that why you were so out of it today?” Bokuto asked quietly, properly lacing their fingers together.

It was Akaashi’s turn to look at Bokuto with a puzzled expression.

“What?”

Bokuto shrugged and stayed quiet for a moment as the two teams made their way towards them.

“The gods were looking out for our boyfriend, that’s all.” Was all he said before running towards Kuroo to tackle him in a hug in the doorway.

The rest of Nekoma managed to jump out of the way just in time before being bowled over by the Fukurodani captain, and Akaashi watched the boy’s fondly as everything tried to make sense in his mind. Had it not been a dream? Had their ten yen been enough? Was this real?

Akaashi’s legs moved before he realized they were moving and as soon as Bokuto pried himself off of Kuroo, the setter’s arms found their way to loop around the other’s neck. He buried his face in Kuroo’s neck and took a breath before slowly exhaling with a slight shudder. He could cry, he was happy and relieved and he couldn’t believe it.

He pulled back from Kuroo, who was looking back at him with raised eyebrows, surprised by the affection.

“How are you feeling?” Akaashi asked slowly, glancing over at Bokuto who had gone to run after Kenma and a crying Hinata.

“I feel like I’ve won the lottery.” Kuroo said quietly with a smile before leaning forward, his lips brushing against Akaashi’s ear as he whispered. “Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SIIIIIKE, you think i'd write a sad story?? i'd _never_ do such a thing.


End file.
